title: Prognosis of a normal positron emission tomography 82Rb myocardial perfusion imaging study in women with no history of coronary disease.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI) with positron emission tomography (PET) has advantages over single-photon emission computerized tomography, particularly for women. This investigation was undertaken to define the prognosis of a normal stress PET MPI study in women.
  
  
  METHODS
  The cohort comprised 457 women evaluated for suspected coronary artery disease (CAD) who had normal pharmacologic stress (82)Rb PET MPI. No patient had clinically evident CAD. Kaplan-Meier estimates were used to determine death and initial nonfatal cardiac event rates over 7 years. Log rank tests were used to assess the relationship between baseline cardiac risk and events during follow-up, and to contrast survival in the cohort with age- and gender-matched US census comparators.
  
  
  RESULTS
  During follow-up, there were 11 deaths (all nonischemic), 3 nonfatal myocardial infarctions, 3 percutaneous coronary interventions and 1 coronary artery bypass operation. Average risks of death and initial nonfatal cardiac events were 0.72 and 0.47% per year, respectively. Cardiac events were associated with a history of diabetes (p < 0.0003) and a family history of CAD (p < 0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A normal cardiac PET study is associated with a very low rate of future cardiac events. Women with diabetes and a strong family history of CAD are more likely to sustain events and require close surveillance for the development of coronary disease.
authors.affiliation: Research Department, St. Francis Hospital, Roslyn, NY, USA.
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Van Tosh
authors.forename: Phyllis G
authors.initials: PG
authors.lastname: Supino
authors.forename: Kenneth J
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Nichols
authors.forename: Dahlia
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Garza
authors.forename: Steven F
authors.initials: SF
authors.lastname: Horowitz
authors.forename: Nathaniel
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Reichek
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D055414:Myocardial Perfusion Imaging; D049268:Positron-Emission Tomography; D011379:Prognosis